Development secretary says ‘catastrophic disaster’ is looming unless foreign donors follow UK lead to tackle disease that has infected half a million Yemenis

Humanitarian aid is “the only hope Yemeni people have to survive”, said the UK development minister, Priti Patel. She warned Yemen is “on the brink of catastrophic disaster” unless the international community follows Britain’s lead to stem the cholera epidemic.

Heavy rains, stagnant water and overflowing rubbish bins have stoked a second wave of the outbreak, which has so far swept across 90% of the country, infecting almost half a million people and killing 1,900 since it began in 2015.